


Tunnel 378 West

by Katstories



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-31
Updated: 2016-10-31
Packaged: 2018-08-28 02:34:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,281
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8427886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katstories/pseuds/Katstories
Summary: My contribution to the DA October's writers contest.Encounters of the Reptile Kind





	

“Just keep running!” Leo yelled to his brothers, waving them on. Not surprisingly Mikey is out in front, with Raph a close second, though he’d slow down enough to urge Donnie along. Leo turned again and swung his swords in several arching moves, tiny high-pitched clangs echoed off the blades and he bit back a curse as one of the tiny daggers buried itself into his bicep. Flinging a several smoke bombs behind him, Leo turned, plucked the daggers out and ran to catch up.

“Leo, can we take them?” Raph questioned, he slowed down enough to match pace with Leo, who in turn, sped up. “No, not without preparation, there is a wave of them Raph, it’s like a boiling sea of pointed teeth back there.” Leo huffed, breath starting to burn in his chest, how long had they been running anyway? “Our best bet it to get to where the underground breaks up into those weird land masses as we get closer to the surface and have Donnie blow up several of the connecting land bridges.”

“That’s a brilliant idea Leo,” Donnie replied, “except I don’t have any explosives! What am I supposed to work with, hmmm?” 

“I don’t know Donnie, you’re the genius, and I have faith you’ll think of something.” Leo replied and he looked over his shell. At least they seemed of have put a greater distance between them and the seething horde at their shells, there, at least was a bright side.

“Yea don’t worry Dee you’ll think of something, I mean you come up with so much stuff! Like the fixing the remotes and the Shellraser and the retro-mutagen and, cappuccino pizza, no wait I came up with that…” 

“Enough Mikey, I get the idea!” Donnie howled at Mikey’s shell, “I suppose, I could set the T-Phones to self destruct with a more energetic expenditure of the explosive within, but I’m going to need time to rig them all.” Donnie viewed the surrounding terrain, “possibly I’ll be able to get some additional energy from the land and hopefully not asphyxiate ourselves.” Donnie looked pointedly at Leo and Raph, “I’m going to need you to buy me some time.” 

Raph and Leo nodded and looked over their shells at the following mass. “We’re going to get buried under that you know,” murmured Leo to Raph, “we could make it a running battle, we can’t stand still long. Not unless we can find a choke point.” 

“Yea Leo, I get it.” Raph looked about, “up ahead is where the ground starts breaking up again. We can use those islands and the pillars to knock them off or crush them.” 

“Yea, I remember passing that. Hey Donnie!” Leo increased his speed and caught up to his taller brother, “up ahead is some land masses and old buildings we can use that area as a choke point and buy you some time. We can’t let them reach the surface Donnie, who knows what they would do.”

“I think the term you’re looking for is flowstone or stalagmite. Honestly Leo, there are some myths about creatures like these, they’ve been known as underground spirits like gnomes, knockers and hobgoblins from around the 13th century. Though I wasn’t expecting anything down here, never mind a chthonic race of little lizard people.” Leo looked quizzically at Donnie. “Cat what now?” 

Donnie grinned, “Chthonic it literally means ‘subterranean’. I’m sure they’ve been up above before since there are some references to them.” Donnie looked over his shell, “though probably not as pissed off as this before.”

“I don’t think it’s so much what they would do to NYC Leo. I think it’s what they would do to us!” Mikey turned and pointed.

“Yea, well leave it to “turtle luck” to have us do the wrong things at the wrong time and show up in the middle of their little civil war.” Raph groused. 

“Hey, look at the bright side guys, at least they aren’t fighting each other anymore, right!” Mikey beamed back towards his brothers, noticing the glares and exasperated looks he had the presence of mind to look sheepish at his comment. 

“We get it Mikey, trust me, we get it.” Donnie replied and suddenly skidded to a stop and looked about. “I vaguely remember some of this area. Didn’t Master Splinter fight Rat King down here?” Raph dashed past Donnie and dragged the genius into running with him. “Whoops, sorry. But yea, I think I remember this. If that’s the case then stuff was left behind at the Rat King’s lair, if I get there quick, I can see what else we can come up with and maybe demolish the land bridges!” 

Raphael pushed Donnie in front of him, “Well what are you waiting for Brainac! Get moving we’re only going to be able to hold them off for so long.” 

“Wait, wait! I need your phones!” Donnie stopped again and Leo and Raph handed over their T-phones to Donnie.

“Mikey, Donnie, let us have your kunai, grapples, everything else you got we could use.” Leo made with the ‘gimmie, gimmie’ hands and Mikey and Donnie complied, handing over smoke bombs, kunai and spare blades. Leo proceeded to split the equipment with Raph.

Leo put a hand on Mikey’s shell. “Mikey I fully expect you to watch Donnie’s back while he gets this set up. I’m counting on you.”

A serious look stole across Mikey’s face and he nodded, “I understand Leo, we’ll be safe.”

“OK, get going guys.” Leo waved at Donnie and Mikey, shooing them towards the pathways beyond. “Donnie, you’ll have to get our attention the hard way once we’re into it.” Donnie nodded, knowing full well that Leo and Raph we’re going to be fighting for their lives.

“Hey guys,” Raph hollered towards their retreating shells, “good luck ‘eh! Don’t take too long!” Mikey waved over his shoulder; he and Donnie vanished into the darkness.

Leo placed his hand on Raph’s shoulder, drawing his attention away from the retreating siblings. “Let’s get going, their following us by scent, we’re only going to have a few minutes to set up traps before they’re on us.”

Raph nodded and they took off running, hoping to reach the deserted islands before the horde reached them.

 

Raph kicked a stone over the edge, peered over the cliff into the blackness below, turned his head slightly to try and hear the impact below. He heard nothing but the near sounds of the lizard man horde following them. “How far down you think it is?”

“Deep enough to kill a man falling, I’m sure.” Leo replied, not looking up from his trap.

“So this is where Dad took out the Rat King, huh?” 

“Well we were pretty busy with killing his monstrosities but yea, I’m pretty sure this is where I saw Sensi walking back from.” Leo gently laid the trigger into the set position and backed away, he looked at Raph; he still had his shell to Leo. “I’ve never seen Sensi so pissed off before, you know? Even against Shredder, he’s still holding back because he still cares for Saki. But against Falco, er Rat King, he went ballistic on him, ended the threat right then and there.”

“Yea well being used against your will as a fuckin meat puppet would get your panties in a bunch too.” Raph growled.

Leo blinked and winced, “Oh hell Raph…I didn’t think, sorry.”

“Yea well, I kinda wish Dad would get over his shit with Shredder and kill him off too.” Raph retorted, still growling, “The police can’t keep his mutants in jail, and Sherdder’s too much of a threat breathing.” Raph sighed heavily, “We gotta do something before something permanent happens to one of us.”

Leo looked at Raph’s shell; it hadn’t been the first time one of them had voiced their opinions about doing something “drastic” to the Shredder before too long. It’s just that Leo knew, even though he wished it wasn’t the case, that even fighting together, they weren’t strong enough to defeat the Shredder. Master Splinter was the only one that could do it and Yoshi still believed too much in Saki to cross that line just yet. Leo shook his head and walked over the Raph, put a hand on his shell and gently pulled him back from the edge. “Is everything ready?”

Raph huffed, “yea, I’ve got it set up. I hate the fact we’re going to be so close to the edges here. And we’re really praying that Donnie can come up with something to break the bridges, too many ifs ya know?”

“Why Raph, I had no idea you’ve turned into such a mother hen.” Leo teased, with Raph giving him the stink eye. Leo leaned in for a side hug and Raph quietly chuckled. “But I believe if we can just break that stalagmite over there and get it to topple, it will destroy the connecting land masses and cut them off, we just need Donnie for the extra oomph.” Leo tensed, hearing howling of the hordes getting closer. “Just about showtime.”

“You know I wouldn’t have though little lizard men dressed up in miners outfits could have been so terrifying, but there it is.” Raph waved his arm in the direction of the seething, encroaching mass. 

Leonardo and Raphael faded into the shadows as the horde came into their position. The leaders came into the clearing on the largest of the islands. They chattered and hissed in their strange language calling for a halt, for caution, scenting the air slowing their troops to a craw to look at the strange thing sitting in the middle of the island. A rubber chicken.

Leonardo listened to strange trilling and clicks as the leaders circled the rubber chicken. It must have been a strange thing, something obviously not living smelling of rubber and turtle, it certainly seemed to confuse the hell out of them. And then one of them poked the chicken with a tiny sword and it exploded in a consuming cloud of blackened smoke. 

Frightened yips were suddenly drowned out by the thundering crash of a pillar smashing down on the chickens’ position rattling the ground below and crushing their leaders and a handful of others. Now the screeches of the dieing, those in pain and confusion were heard. 

Leonardo flicked several kunai at another trapped pillar, snapping the supporting lines; it teetered and then pitched to its side. Trundling down like an unmanned steamroller, the pillar ground against tiny lizard bodies mowing many to a bloody pulp or knocking them off the land bridge and into the darkness below. The pillar ended its stroll of death by crashing into a stalagmite formation with a resounding crack. The stalagmite shuddered and another sharp crack shotguned through the disturbed air. Under the cover of the smoke Raphael sped past Leonardo and let loose another volley of smoke bombs, expanding the cloud and thickening the soup further. His powerful legs bunched under him and he jumped to a partially collapsed wall and with an accurate kick, sending that wall collapsing into a mass of lizard men and shaking the land below. A handful were crushed while more were forced over the edge, screaming as they plummeted to their deaths far below. Raphael sprang to his secondary position and crouched low. 

Another barrage of kunai flew through the smoke and further howls of pain were heard. Leonardo dashed off to the side and made for his secondary position. He pulled his sword and struck at another tied line. This toppled another wall, crushing another group of lizards. 

Raphael noticed that the smoke had begun to clear and launched another set of smoke pellets into the rubble, startling more of the lizards and chasing them away from the billowing darkness. Several of the creatures sniffed trying to scent where the Turtles had gotten too but the overwhelming taste of blood and dust in the area had become thick enough to stunt even their natural skills. That was then Leonardo struck.

His feet made no sound as he dashed through a group of the lizards. Blades quick and silent sent a handful of the creatures gagging on their own blood to their deaths. Raphael made his run, his Sai punching though torso and skull, flinging them off as quickly as he might he dashed for his other safe position; only to round on a group of lizard men startling the both of them. 

“Oh hell.” Raphael skidded and began to jump away, but with an enraged yell, the troop jumped him as one. Tiny swords and even sharper teeth tore into him, some tried gnawing on his shell, and others found purchase on a leg or an arm. And Raphael screamed. Punching Sai into one creature after another, scrambling to grab with another hand and fling them off into the darkness below. He staggered about falling back towards the fray and away from the dangerous edges.

Leonardo had heard the cry and was quickly heading towards Raph’s position, blades singing, and blood splashed in great arcs as he plowed through a group. Many of the lizards’ swords found purchase in his legs and Leo stumbled for a moment. The lizards took the opportunity to jump Leo’s shell and attempt to drag him to the ground. Leonardo rolled forward smashing the ones on his shell into the ground and came up swinging. 

 

Donatello and Michelangelo heard the battle long before they saw it, which slowed their mad dash back to their brothers’ position. From a vantage point Donnie could see his placement of his cobbled together device would work the best. He signaled for Michelangelo to follow him quietly, as they picked their way across the open land towards his target. Fortunately all of the lizard men’s focus was on the other two brothers so they managed by sneaking along. Donnie crawled over the edge of the flowstone into position and bound the bomb to its mark. He then skittered back to Michelangelo’s hidden location.

Donnie nodded at Michelangelo and the two of them yelled for all they were worth. “RETREAT!”

Raphael barely heard the “retreat” over the snarls and cries of the lizard men swarming him. “Leo time to go!” he bellowed, hoping to be overheard just in case that Leonardo hadn’t heard the cry over his own seething mass of teeth and claws. Raphael swiped his Sai across his body knocking off and skewering several more creatures before running back towards his brother’s position. 

Leonardo stood surrounded by a growing bloody circular wall of corpses, his swords a silver and red blur as he defended himself against the insistent and seemingly never ending horde of lizard men. He heard the “retreat” and “time to go,” and began maneuvering his way, pushing his feet through the corpses to make his way towards their retreat position. 

With lizards on their backs and swords swinging at their legs. Raphael and Leonardo waded through the throng of combatants, the creatures unwilling to give ground, unwilling to allow their prey the opportunity to move beyond their battleground. Leonardo swiped his blades at Raphael’s back removing the last of the ones hanging on and the boys went shell to shell. “They really aren’t wanting us to leave are they?” Leo forced out breathlessly. “Nope, you woulda thought we had done enough but I’m thinking no.” Raph added. Leo noted how bloody Raph was, his Sai had done a poor job keeping the smaller opponents away. 

“Move to your right Raph.” And he did. 

Leo cast a glance over his shoulder and noted Donatello and Michelangelo’s position. “I think it’s too far to run it, not with these things being so persistent, but we could get the ball rolling.” Leo glanced meaningfully at Raphael gauging his reaction. 

Raphael thought about the suggestion for a moment, “Yea, we might be able to if they let up enough. Let’s do it.”

Leo hoped they we’re close enough. He felt Raphael’s intake of breath and together they let forth a bellow that scared Donatello and Michelangelo to death. “T-PHONE SELF DESTRUCT!”

The resulting explosion surprised everyone and for a brief moment the combat stopped. Raphael and Leonardo took advantage of the lizard men’s surprise and retreated back quickly. Leo lamented that the plan had not gone as he had hoped when an earsplitting CRACK and thunderous rumble shifted the ground below their feet. “Oh hell.” 

The lizard men screeched and the horde retreated, tumbling over each other in an effort to get off the shifting mass and back to what they hoped was safer ground. Leo stowed his blades, grabbed Raphael and they stumbled/ran towards their brother’s position. Land shifted under their feet tottering towards one side and they could hear the rest of the bridge behind them and the stalagmite shatter with the force of the earthquake. The bridge between them and Donatello splintered and crumbled into the nothing below. Raphael and Leonardo pulled to a stop, hastily pulled out their grappling guns and fired as the ground beneath them gave way and they plummeted down. 

“No!” Donnie screamed, he and Michelangelo raced towards the edge trying to locate their brothers grapple lines, but in the clouds of dust and dirt could see nothing over the side.

Michelangelo crawled carefully to the cliffside and peered over hoping to catch the slightest glimpse. He shouted with joy as he caught sight of the grapples not too far below. His joy became cheers as he watched an exhausted Leonardo and Raphael slowly make their way up the ropes. “You’re alive! Woot!”

Donnie, on his hands and knees, looked over the edge, “You idiots! Why did you do that?” Don demanded, relief and anger warring across his face.

Leo huffed in exertion, “we weren’t going to get close enough, there was just too many. Better to have taken this chance.”

Raph added, “Yea besides it worked didn’t it?”

“You’re idiots, your both idiots. After I get you home and patched up I’m not talking to you both for a week.” Don smiled and pulled from his belt and extra length of rope. Michelangelo took up the end and tied if off to a stable formation, testing the knot he nodded to Donnie who fed the other end over the side to his brothers.

Raph then Leo hauled themselves up. Donnie clucked over their wounds, but Raphael was definitely the worse off then the two, sporting gouges, bite marks and some chunks of missing skin. Donnie pulled the first aid kit and began working on Raph. 

“Do you think any of them are still over there, that they might have survived?” Mikey asked.

Leo looked patted his little brother on the shoulder, “good possibility of it, they ran faster than we did. But they’ve got no way across now.” Leo strained his eyes but with all the dust in the air it was impossible to see across the chasm. 

Donnie helped Raph to his feet and then began working on Leo. “So do you think we should continue exploring further down here?” Donnie asked, tisking at a particularly deep cut near Leo’s hamstring. 

“What, like now?” Mikey’s eyes went wide in horror.

“Not now you doofus, like whenever, after we recover.” Raph gently cuffed Mikey over the shell and then hugged him tightly. 

Leo stood up supported by Donnie begin limping their long way back to the surface. As Mikey supported Raph as they began to move out. 

“No, I think not,” Leo said, “we’ll seal it off, call it quits and say good riddance to tunnel 378.”

**Author's Note:**

> The action sequences got a little twitchy for me at the end but I still like how it turned out.  
> I hope I kept the tension right.


End file.
